Wise’s Strategic Move into Stablecoin Infrastructure
Wise, the global currency exchange platform, is diving headfirst into the cryptocurrency world by hiring a digital-asset product lead focused on stablecoins. Honestly, this isn’t just another corporate crypto experiment—it’s a bold pivot showing that big players are finally waking up to stablecoins as real financial infrastructure. The role, posted by product director Matthew Salisbury on LinkedIn, has already pulled in over 100 applicants, proving the intense buzz around what Wise might build. Based in London at Wise’s global headquarters, the candidate will join the Accounts team to explore how customers could hold digital assets in their Wise accounts. You know, this comes at a crucial time when traditional financial institutions are scrambling to catch up with the stablecoin wave. Wise isn’t just testing the waters—it’s assembling a team that could revolutionize cross-border payments for millions.
Matthew Salisbury’s LinkedIn post was straight to the point: “If you’ve built wallets and/or payments solution based on stablecoins and you now want to do it at Wise apply through the ad or DM me.” This is a no-nonsense call for builders who get that stablecoins are the future of global payments. The company wants candidates with at least five years of product management experience and a track record of launching business-to-consumer products in digital assets or blockchain.
Compared to other financial institutions tiptoeing into crypto, Wise’s move feels more decisive and targeted. While banks like JPMorgan have dabbled in blockchain, Wise’s focus on stablecoins for its core payment business suggests it’s aiming for immediate, practical use. On that note, this stands in stark contrast to the slow, regulation-heavy approaches common in traditional banking.
Putting it all together, Wise’s hiring spree is a huge vote of confidence in stablecoin technology’s power to shake up traditional cross-border payments. By positioning itself where traditional finance meets digital assets, Wise could potentially use its massive user base to push mainstream stablecoin adoption faster than any DeFi protocol or crypto-native firm could manage alone.
Global Regulatory Landscape for Stablecoin Adoption
The timing of Wise’s stablecoin hiring aligns perfectly with a rapidly shifting regulatory scene that’s finally giving institutions the clarity they need. The recent GENIUS Act in the United States has set up a friendlier framework for stablecoin adoption, while other regions are crafting their own rules. Anyway, this regulatory maturity is exactly what companies like Wise have been waiting for before pouring serious resources into crypto.
Proof of regulatory impact is clear in the numbers—the stablecoin market cap hit $277.8 billion in August 2025, a 4% jump tied directly to regulatory advances. The GENIUS Act specifically stops stablecoin issuers from paying yield directly to holders and demands full-reserve backing with dollars or Treasuries, creating a safer space for institutional players. Ironically, this has boosted demand for synthetic stablecoins that can offer yield in other ways.
Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller noted the steady pace of this adoption, stating:
We think the forecast doesn’t require unrealistically large or permanent rate dislocations to materialize; instead, it relies on incremental, policy-enabled adoption compounding over time.
Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller
In contrast to the U.S. approach, adoption in Wise’s home market of the United Kingdom has been slower, as regulators work on new stablecoin rules set for late 2026. The Bank of England has called its proposed limits on stablecoin holdings temporary, with Deputy Governor Sarah Breeden stressing:
We would expect to remove the limits once we see that the transition no longer threatens the provision of finance to the real economy.
Sarah Breeden
Compared to regions with fuzzy regulations that see lower adoption and more volatility, the clearer frameworks in major markets are boosting institutional trust. This regulatory split creates both headaches and chances for global firms like Wise that have to juggle multiple jurisdictions while scaling products worldwide.
Summing up the regulatory shifts, 2025 is a turning point where solid frameworks are replacing the messy guidance that held back institutional crypto adoption before. For Wise, this clarity cuts the uncertainty that might have stalled such moves earlier, letting the company tap into the growing acceptance of stablecoins as legitimate financial tools.
Stablecoin Technology and Payment Infrastructure Evolution
Stablecoin technology has morphed from speculative trading tools into core infrastructure for global payment systems, offering faster settlement, lower costs, and programmable features that old-school banking can’t match. It’s arguably true that this tech makes international money transfers more efficient by letting digital dollars move without traditional banking middlemen, directly tackling Wise’s main business of cross-border payments.
Signs of this tech growth are everywhere. Last month, Visa started a pilot using stablecoins USDC and EURC to help financial institutions with cross-border payments, showing how traditional payment networks are embracing blockchain. Chainlink’s grip on oracle infrastructure—handling over $25 trillion in transaction value—highlights how vital reliable data feeds are for stablecoin ops and DeFi apps.
Chainalysis data sheds light on the real-world uses driving adoption, noting in a December report:
In these regions, retail adoption of stablecoins is largely driven by their practicality for low-cost remittances, secure savings in regions with volatile currencies, and accessibility to DeFi services like lending and staking.
Chainalysis
Tech advances are especially clear in synthetic stablecoins like Ethena’s USDe, which uses algorithmic tricks and delta-neutral hedging to keep price pegs while generating yield. USDe’s market cap more than doubled to $14.8 billion, showing market hunger for innovative stablecoin designs. Cross-chain platforms like LayerZero make transfers between blockchains smooth, reducing the friction that used to limit stablecoin usefulness across networks.
Compared to traditional finance with its slow, centralized go-betweens, blockchain-based stablecoin setups offer way better efficiency and transparency. But they also bring new complexities—remember Hyperliquid’s July 2025 outage that needed $2 million in refunds due to infrastructure flaws. This underscores the ongoing need for strong tech foundations as stablecoins go mainstream.
Pulling it together, stablecoin infrastructure has matured enough for companies like Wise to build serious products on it. The mix of reliable oracles, cross-chain interoperability, and smart algorithmic methods forms a base that can handle the scale and reliability demands of global payment platforms serving millions.
Market Dynamics and Institutional Stablecoin Adoption
Institutional adoption of stablecoins is speeding up like never before, fueled by regulatory clarity, efficiency gains, and the real benefits these digital assets bring to global business. Companies and financial institutions are weaving stablecoins into operations for treasury management, cross-border payments, and liquidity solutions, using partnerships to boost services and cut costs. You know, this marks a total shift from the retail-driven crypto hype of the past.
The evidence is overwhelming. Institutional flows into Ethereum ETFs have smashed records, with net inflows topping $13.7 billion since July 2024, signaling strong faith in crypto assets. Corporate use of stablecoins for payrolls has tripled lately, with USDC leading the charge due to its stability and compliance perks. The stablecoin market cap reaching $277.8 billion in August 2025 shows the sheer scale of money flowing into this space.
BlackRock’s push into stablecoin reserves exemplifies this institutional trend, with Jon Steel, the global head of product and platform for BlackRock’s cash management business, emphasizing:
We want to be — and we believe we are — a preeminent reserve manager for stablecoin issuers.
Jon Steel
Partnerships between traditional finance and crypto-native firms are exploding. Circle teamed with Deutsche Börse to promote stablecoins in Europe under MiCA, and Aptos linked up with World Liberty Financial for USD1 integration. These deals aim to slash settlement costs, boost operational efficiency, and draw more institutions into digital assets. Chainlink’s finance partners now include Swift, Euroclear, JPMorgan, Fidelity, UBS, and Mastercard.
Compared to past retail-driven crypto cycles, today’s institutional focus is all about utility and long-term value, not speculation. The $13.7 billion net inflows into Ethereum ETFs since July 2024 and rising corporate crypto holdings favoring stablecoins for treasury and payments prove this practical approach. Even the US government uses Chainlink to publish economic data onchain, signaling top-level acceptance.
In essence, the market is undergoing a radical change where traditional finance is adopting blockchain instead of fighting it. For Wise, this institutional backing creates both pressure and opportunity—the company has to move fast to avoid being outmaneuvered by nimbler rivals while possibly using its existing user base to grab value in the evolving digital payments game.
Global Expansion and Emerging Market Stablecoin Usage
Emerging markets are seeing explosive growth in stablecoin adoption, driven by economic chaos, banking gaps, and the practical perks these digital assets offer for basic financial services. Countries like Venezuela, Argentina, and Brazil are turning to dollar-pegged stablecoins to fight hyperinflation and access global financial services that local banks can’t provide. On that note, this is a massive opening for companies like Wise that already serve global customers.
The data is compelling. Standard Chartered’s analysis predicts over $1 trillion could shift from emerging market banks into stablecoins by 2028, highlighting a fundamental change in how people in unstable economies handle their money. Chainalysis ranks Venezuela 13th globally in crypto adoption, with usage jumping 110%, and crypto made up 9% of the $5.4 billion in remittances to Venezuela in 2023.
Chainalysis pinpointed the drivers behind this adoption, noting:
Latin America and Africa are among the fastest-growing regions for stablecoin adoption, driven by lower remittance costs and currency volatility.
Chainalysis
Fireblocks data shows stablecoins account for 60% of crypto transactions in both Brazil and Argentina, proving deep penetration in key Latin American economies. The GENIUS Act’s full dollar backing rule makes them seem safer than local bank deposits in unstable economies. About two-thirds of the current stablecoin supply is already in savings wallets across emerging markets, showing it’s gone beyond mere speculation.
Compared to developed markets where stablecoins are often used for trading and DeFi, emerging market adoption centers on basic financial services and inflation protection. Stablecoin remittances offer much bigger cost savings than old methods in regions like Sub-Saharan Africa, where banking infrastructure is weak and fees are sky-high for low-income users sending money abroad.
To wrap it up, emerging market stablecoin adoption is both a huge growth chance and proof of the tech’s real-world value. For Wise, serving customers in over 160 countries, integrating stablecoins could massively improve service in areas with the worst banking infrastructure, potentially snagging major market share in the fastest-growing parts of the global payments industry.
Competitive Landscape and Strategic Implications
The competitive scene for digital payments is changing fast as traditional financial firms, tech giants, and crypto-native platforms all zero in on stablecoins as the future of global money moves. Wise’s move happens amid fierce competition from players like BlackRock and Visa to Circle and countless DeFi protocols—each bringing different strengths to the evolving stablecoin ecosystem.
Signs of this competitive heat are everywhere. BlackRock’s expansion into stablecoin reserves with its BSTBL fund positions the $13.5 trillion asset manager as a key infrastructure player. Visa’s pilot using USDC and EURC shows how traditional payment networks are integrating blockchain to stay relevant. Circle’s partnerships with Mastercard and Crossmint expand USDC for global use, while multi-currency stablecoins are rising to cut dollar dependence.
The S&P Global and Chainlink partnership marks another competitive front, with Chainlink CEO Sergey Nazarov calling it game-changing, stressing that:
S&P Global Ratings is a top trusted credit rater for big banks and governments.
Sergey Nazarov
TRON’s dominance as a stablecoin pipeline shows how network effects build competitive edges—the network hosts over $80 billion in USDT supply and handles way more USDT transfers than other blockchain networks. DeFi feedback loops on TRON strengthen its spot, with SunSwap DEX volumes consistently hitting $3 billion monthly in 2025. This creates a cycle where liquidity draws more liquidity, building what experts call a ‘moat of stickiness’ that newcomers must break.
Compared to Wise’s mostly retail-focused user base, many rivals are targeting institutional clients first. BlackRock’s BSTBL fund serves stablecoin issuers directly, while Circle’s deals with Deutsche Börse aim to fit regulated stablecoins into European financial systems. This split in target markets offers both specialization opportunities and risks of being overpowered by richer competitors.
In short, Wise faces a tricky field where it must use its existing user base and brand clout while acting quickly to avoid disruption. The company’s focus on stablecoins for its core payment business suggests a smart approach—building on its strengths rather than trying to beat everyone in the crypto world. But the intense competition means Wise can’t afford delays or half-hearted efforts in its crypto play.
Risk Assessment and Future Market Projections
The stablecoin ecosystem faces big risks like regulatory unknowns, tech weaknesses, market swings, and potential systemic issues that could derail growth and timelines. For companies like Wise jumping in, grasping and managing these risks is key to lasting success, not becoming another corporate crypto flop.
Proof of these risks pops up in recent events. The July 2025 Hyperliquid outage that required $2 million in refunds revealed infrastructure holes in some blockchain systems. Algorithmic stablecoins still risk depegs, as history shows, though overcollateralized types handle price shocks better. Data points to a 1,025% surge in AI attacks since 2023 and crypto losses exceeding $3.1 billion in 2025, mostly from hacks—so security is a top worry.
Regulatory risks vary widely by region, adding compliance headaches for global operators like Wise. The Bank of England’s proposed limits on stablecoin holdings, though temporary, show how regulatory styles differ even among allies. The European Systemic Risk Board has suggested banning multi-issuance stablecoins issued jointly inside and outside the EU, tackling systemic risks from cross-border ops that could hit Wise’s global model.
Compared to traditional finance with its established risk frameworks, stablecoins and DeFi show higher volatility due to factors like leverage and derivatives use. Synthetic stablecoins’ experimental nature adds new dangers, requiring a balance of innovation and safety. RWA protocol losses of $14.6 million in early 2025 highlight the need for strong oversight as the tech evolves.
Despite these risks, market forecasts are mostly upbeat. Citi analysts think stablecoin issuance could jump from $280 billion to $4 trillion by 2030, while Coinbase guesses the market might hit $1.2 trillion by 2028. The stablecoin market cap climbing to $277.8 billion in August 2025 shows the momentum behind this asset class. Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller’s note about “incremental, policy-enabled adoption compounding over time” captures the steady growth defining this phase.
All things considered, Wise’s stablecoin move is a calculated gamble on a tech that’s gone from fringe to mainstream in finance. While risks are real, the potential payoffs—like defending its core payment business from disruption and seizing new growth—make the strategic shift worth it. The company’s step-by-step approach, starting with hires instead of rushed launches, hints it knows that successful crypto integration needs careful planning and execution.
